


Krampusnacht

by JoAsakura



Series: Shine on, you Crazy Snowflake (DMC) [5]
Category: Devil May Cry
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2006-12-12
Updated: 2007-07-03
Packaged: 2017-10-03 04:22:12
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 6,895
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14139
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JoAsakura/pseuds/JoAsakura
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>What seems like an easy mission at the holidays goes horribly wrong - and could cost Dante his life.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Introduction

Given the state of airline security and general climate of paranoia, heavily armed demon hunters were unlikely to be boarding any planes for the foreseeable future. This was compounded by the fact that Dante didn't even have a passport, or the last time he checked, a driver's license.

It was fortunate, then, that it wasn't Dante Sparda boarding Virgin Airlines Flight 472 to Munich from JFK. British national and SAS officer Anthony Redgrave had no difficulty showing his credentials and passing through the security checkpoint, despite the fact that he was carrying some imposing weaponry and had checked a very large metal suitcase.

As he strode into international departures with Ebony and Ivory's weights comfortable against his ribs, Dante was struck, not for the first time, at the sheer scope of Enzo's network.

And the fact that he was using the passport of a man dead the past decade.

His mobile bleated a few bars of "Fat-Bottomed Girls" and Dante flipped it open. "Enzo. Have I told you lately how much I love you?" He said, still carrying Tony's midland accent.

"Aw, Snowflake. Yer making me all warm and fuzzy." Enzo laughed into the phone. "Hey, I talked to Klaus and gave him yer new number. He'll have all the details when you arrive."

"Be nice to see him again. Haven't talked to him since the Swiss thing. You know I was picking chunks of ichor out of my hair for days?" He sat down heavily in one of the airport's uncomfortable seats. "Trish call in?"

"Yeah. Said she's going to be onsite for another coupla days. Personally, I think she's just enjoyin' the beach. New kid handled a domestic redcap infestation in Hoboken. Incurred some property damage client ain't too happy 'bout."

"He blew something up? That's my boy." Dante grinned, and it widened when he heard Enzo's snort of exasperation. "Come on, Enzo. I'm sure he didn't demolish something without good reason." Dante trailed off as they announced his flight. "They're playing my song. I'll give Klaus a big wet sloppy for ya."

"Asshole. Good luck." Enzo laughed and hung up.


	2. Ankommen, Flughafen München

Alastor was screaming in his head as Dante retrieved the sword's metal case from the baggage carousel - a howl of inarticulate rage at being shipped as cargo. And something about snakes, but he was pretty certain the demon blade was just angling for attention with that.

When his mobile started to play it's generic ringtone, Dante was almost relieved. "'Lo?"

"Dante, liebchen. How was your flight?" Klaus-Nicholas von Schwanritter's cigarette-roughened voice purred in Dante's ear. "I'm sorry...Herr Redgrave, isn't it?"

Dante had a strict policy about not sleeping with any of his handlers (exceptforenzothatonetimebutnoonewastoeverspeakofthat), a policy that was often hard to handle. Like in this situation. If Dante had been inclined, he could've articulated that the mongol tilt to the man's eyes, the olive skin from an Ottoman generations past and the pale-sand hair decorating a body like an Austrian warhorse were some of the individual things that he found attractive. But it mostly degenerated into "Guh."

Which is what he muttered into the phone before collecting himself. (Damn, stupid, horny demon blood) he thought. "Klaus. Where are you, man? I'm at baggage." He had been looking around, and his German handler was nowhere to be seen.

"I'm at the job location, Dante." Klaus sounded unusually serious. "I've sent a car for you. There should be a lovely young woman holding a sign for Mr. Redgrave? She's your ride. And don't be a pig, geliebter. I shudder to think what you put those poor flight attendants through."

"Klaus, that hurts." Dante hefted Alastor's case with his free hand and looked around until he saw her. "Damn, boy. You have got yourself some very fine taste in staff, have i mentioned that before?"

"Every time you see me. Now be good. I'll see you in a bit." Klaus disconnected as Dante gave his best grin to the stunning dark woman in the perfectly fitted chauffeur's uniform.

"Herr Redgrave? My name is Petra and it's my pleasure to be taking you for your trip." She held up a gloved hand before Dante could speak. "Klaus wished for me to inform you that the car is stocked with Jaegermeister and that I am to stun-gun you if you make a pass at me." Her perfect berry lips parted in a smile that felt like a kick to the nuts."I am to understand that it wouldn't hurt you, but it would be discomfiting."

"He thinks of everything, doesn't he?" Dante sighed, shaking his head with a laugh. "Don't worry Petra. I'll be good."

She looked over her shoulder and gave him another smile. "I'm terribly disappointed now. I purchased a taser just for this event. Perhaps later you'll let me try it out on my own time." She laughed sweetly and led him to the car.


	3. It looked like christmas had barfed up an entire town

Dante stepped out of the limo, reeking of Jaegermeister and Silk Cuts. He pushed his sunglasses up his nose and wished, not for the first time, that he could've gotten drunk.

His body metabolised alcohol just as quickly and efficiently as anything else. Once, in a fit of depression after returning from Mallet Island, Dante had downed enough wood alcohol to kill a fully-grown rhino. He'd briefly hallucinated, threw up, and had been left with nothing but the peculiar taste of old rubber bands in the back of his throat for the next three days.

But at least he liked the taste of Jaeger.

The little village was festooned in greens and lights and appallingly cute children with rosy cheeks and liederhosen danced to a tuba-heavy band while smiling townspeople hoisted their ale at a tavern.

"Holy shit. It's like Christmas threw up all over here." He muttered, glancing at the carved and gilded "Wilkommen, Slaebenich" sign. "This is the job site?" He asked Petra as she opened the trunk to retrieve Alastor's case. The demon sword had retreated into sulky silence.

"Yes, why do you ask?" She gestured for him to take his own damn luggage.

"It's just a little.. more brightly coloured than i'm used to." He hoisted his duffle and the case. "I feel like i'm about to have a Hunter S. Thompson moment and everyone turns into bats. Fear and Loathing in Slaebenich."

Petra gave him a look of utter incomprehension and then shrugged, leading him to the overwhelmingly quaint inn at the corner. "Klaus will be waiting for you." She purred, leaning forward to plant a kiss on Dante's cheek. "Call me when you're finished so i can try out my toys on you."

Dante gave her a wink. "You know it, babe."

"I see you even charmed Petra? Amazing." Klaus's voice caused him to turn. "She usually prefers the ladies."

"Those are some lucky, lucky women." Dante laughed before reaching out to shake Klaus's hand. The handler responded by catching Dante in a hug and pressing a kiss to the edge of his ear.

"It's good to see you again, Dante." Klaus murmured before letting him go.

"Klaus." He let out a sigh. "What's up? It's not usual for one of you guys to be at a job." Klaus nodded and motioned for Dante to follow him up the stairs, giving the dried-apple face grandmother behind the counter a winning smile.

"I'll tell you upstairs. This is a very special case to me, Dante."

"What d'you mean?" The dark wooden stairs creaked under Dante's weight as he followed.

Klaus turned at the door to the room, looking at Dante for a long moment. "I'm your client."


	4. Absinthe goes badly with most foods

The room was, as Dante had expected, small and picture-postcard quaint. It was actually starting to weird him out a little bit. Klaus didn't seem to notice and threw open the old lead-glass window. The blat of tuba music was carried in on the crisp December air.

Dante dropped his luggage on the floral-quilted bed and sprawled down next to them, listening to his back pop. "Ok, Klaus, talk."

The handler nodded as he opened up one of the room's cabinets. "This is my hometown, Dante." He pulled out a bottle full of green-gold liquid and popped the top. "Recently, someone stole an important artefact from a local shrine. The police have been..reluctant to get involved." He poured out two glasses and fished out some sugar cubes from the cabinet.

Dante sat up, taking a glass and sniffing it. "Hn. Why's that?"

Klaus set the sugar cubes on a slotted spoon and dripped water from a nearby pitcher onto them. He was silent while the absinthe became milky and opalescent. "There's the concern that if word gets out the Krampusgesicht has been taken, there'll be some panic. It poses no concern most of the year... But Christmas eve is Krampusnacht, and..."

Dante took a sip, closing his eyes at the anise taste on his tongue. "Krampus. Santa's little devil-helper in some traditions, right?" He watched the handler nod and took another sip, feeling the absinthe tingle down his throat. "So what happens on Krampusnacht?"

"The mask is paraded through town at sunset. Then, a parade of revellers in masks sweep through the town with switches." Klaus took a sip and looked out the window, golden light starting to lance over the rooftops. "All of the town's ill will is concentrated and absorbed in that one evening. Carried by the spirit of the Krampus-demon imprisoned within."

"And if you guys don't feed the mask?" Dante's stomach growled and he tried to ignore it. Harsh experience had proven that absinthe was a terrible with-dinner beverage, and this was strong enough to make him feel just a little numb.

"The Krampus will most likely destroy this town and everyone in it. We have to find it before sunset tomorrow." Klaus pulled himself up out of his chair and brought the bottle to the bed with him, sitting beside Dante. "Please help me."

"You know I would." Dante took another sip with his eyes closed, startled when Klaus licked away the liquor on his lips. "Klaus. I don't sleep with my handlers."

"I'm a client right now, Dante. If you lie and say you don't want this too, I'm going to punch you in the face." Klaus chuckled, face in shadows as the sun set behind them.

Dante watched as the twilight began to drain the colour from the room, reaching up to touch the strands of Klaus' hair.

"I've seen you.. you always watch your reflection." Klaus murmured, finishing the absinthe in his glass. "Initially i thought it was because you were an egotistical asshole."

"I am." Dante took another sip, watching Klaus over the rim of the glass. The handler took it from him and finished it in a gulp. The kiss that followed was herb-sweet and faintly tingly as Dante took the last of the absinthe from Klaus's mouth.

"You are, but it's more than that." Klaus slid his hands under Dante's black shirt, tracing the ridges of muscle. "You're looking for something else. Someone. You had a twin, didn't you?" He murmured those last words in the hollow of Dante's throat.

Dante startled and pulled Klaus off of him. "What do you know about that?" His eyes were knife-edge bright, but he loosened his grip enough for the handler to sit back.

"I had a twin sister, Erika...she..." His face dropped, veiled by pale-sand bangs. "she died in a fire a long time ago, and I can never fill that void."

Dante swallowed hard, hands falling back to the bed. "Yeah. I had a twin brother. I.. I lost him to the demons." The words were thick in his throat. "We were.."

Klaus cut him off with another kiss, hands sliding down Dante's sides and under his shirt again. The devil hunter made a low sound,reaching to pull of the other man's jacket, trying to restrain himself enough from tearing it off. "Klaus.."

"Talk later." Klaus murmured, pulling away just long enough to pull his jacket and sweater off. "Action now, devil hunter."


	5. The sword is both a voyeur and a pervert

The inn's small bed was hardly large enough, but it didn't deter Klaus from kissing down Dante's throat, hands working absently at the black leather pants. The devil hunter's red coat and guns had been tossed on the floor next to where Alastor's case had slid off the bed.

The demon blade's subsonic hum of irritation had ceased, reinforcing Dante's belief the sword was a voyeur and a pervert. The thought made him laugh, but the sound caught in his throat as Klaus' mouth closed over his cock. "Gods.. Klaus.."

The man's sharp nails dragged over Dante's hips, raising both quick-fading welts and shivering goosebumps, as he took Dante down his throat. The devil hunter arched with a gasp and Klaus raked his nails across Dante's buttocks before slipping between them.

Dante hissed, slitting his eyes open. "Goddamnit, you cheeky motherfucker..." He rasped as Klaus paused to press a kiss at the head of his penis.

"I can't tell you how many times i've fantasised about you like this." He twisted his fingers inside as he spoke. "I have wanted you since the first time Enzo sent you to me for a job." With his free hand, Klaus stroked himself.

"Now you're talking too much." Dante muttered, grinding against Klaus' fingers. "If you're gonna fuck me, son, better do it before I decide I'd rather be on top." He grinned, toeing off his heavy black boots as he squirmed. "or 'fore i decide to give Petra and her taser a call."

"Petra can have you when I'm done." Klaus bared teeth at Dante, too feral to be a smile, as they endured a few comedic moments trying to wrestle the remains of their clothing off. "I curse your taste in tight pants."

"But my ass looks good in th..." The sentence broke off in a long hiss of breath as Klaus pressed into him. "Oh, holy fuck.." Klaus' nails dug into the curve of his buttocks and Dante arched up to get him in deeper. It was too good, too perfect, he found himself thinking. (Klaus has gotta have old blood. demon blood. something. no human feels like this..) He could hear Klaus' breathing, heavy and punctuated by some of the filthiest words Dante had ever heard in any language.

Klaus' come inside of him felt white-hot and perfect, pleasure rippling up his spine like dominoes. When Klaus finally sagged on top of him, fingers tracing across the sticky warmth splattered on Dante's belly, the devil hunter realised he didn't even remember orgasming. "Holy fuck, man. Sehr gut."

Klaus laughed, shaking his head as he looked at his hand. "Gott. My nails are sharp. I didn't cut you..?"

Dante shook his head. "Nah. Nearly invulnerable, remember?" He pressed Klaus' hand to his hipbone. "Even if you did scratch me, it'd heal before i noticed."

They exchanged a lazy kiss before Klaus propped himself on an elbow. "Must've been useful as a child."

Dante looked up at the now-dark ceiling. "Actually, the damage resistant bit? the unnatural strength? Puberty, man. I was a mess as a kid."

Klaus reached over for the bottle and took a straight swig of the absinthe before handing it to Dante. "I find that hard to believe."

"No, 'struth." Dante took a long gulp and laughed softly. "Vergil and I.. we both were born with all these amped up senses, right? Only my brain.. or whatever.. it was processing all the input like a human woulda. Verg and my folks were the only ones who could talk t'me, or touch me without overloading everything. School tried to have me diagnosed as autistic."

Klaus' face was kind in the dim light. "Dante...."

"Oh, christ. Don't feel sorry for me. It all worked out. Verg took care of me when we were kids... after our folks died..." He trailed off and took another long drink. "Klaus. I am turning into a maudlin drunk in my old age."

"Nonsense." Klaus sat up and stretched, grinning at Dante's appreciative look. "Put some clothes on, you lazy bastard, and i''ll take you to the shrine."

"You're a harsh master, my friend." Dante chuckled as he sat up.

"You've got no idea, geliebter" Klaus winked at him. "Now come on. We have work to do."


	6. Just a little bit of peril

Alastor hummed happily in the back of Dante's brain as he and Klaus trudged through the snow. The moon was a faint glow through the haze of clouds shedding snowflakes on them.

The trail was barely visible in the dark even with Dante's eyesight, but this was Klaus' home territory and he found the way with ease. "We're not too far." He glanced over his shoulder. "But I still don't understand why you had to bring the oversized cocktail olive sticker with you."

Dante laughed as he felt Alastor bristle and brushed the snow from his hair. He turned to look at the lights of Slaebenich winking down below before meeting Klaus' gaze. "Klaus." He gave the man a Look. "I'm a craftsman. I need my tools." He looked past him then at the ever-thickening pine forest. "Shrine's really out of the way."

"It's in the remains of what we believe to be an ancient monastery." Klaus said, glancing up at the woods as well, holding his lantern up. "Come on. You'll see."

Soon enough, the dense pines gave way to crumbled stone walls. Dante looked away from where Klaus was shining the lantern and let his senses adjust. Rotten timbers carried the faint odor of charcoal, faint moonlight glancing off of the shattered bits of stained glass that still clung to the window frames. There was something else, too. Passing over his skin like a lover's fingers.

He felt Klaus' gaze on his back and grinned faintly. "This place was sealed."

The other man nodded. "It would make sense, since the Krampus was hidden away here." They trudged through the snow to the one section that still had a roof attached. Inside was a small wooden altar, the dust showing the outline of where the mask had sat.

"This is a photo of the mask, by the way." Klaus fished in his coat pocket and handed the picture to Dante. The dark, horned face leered back at him with its curling tongue.

"cute. Looks a little like a Japanese Hannya." Dante murmured, committing it to memory before handing it back. "Probably a related demon clan."

The air inside the little building was warmer, the walls still whole and the wooden door still sound, but it tingled like the cold on the back of Dante's neck. "Definitely sealed. Although.." He held up a hand and watched Klaus' eyes widen as the air rippled out around it. "It's pretty damaged. Something's been beating on this for a long time. I guess the Krampus might not always be that thrilled with its living arrangements."

Klaus moved next to him, gloved fingers brushing the back of Dante's hand. "You've gotten better with that, I see." He murmured in the devil hunter's ear. "I remember you used to stumble onto things like this."

"Didn't used to know what I was looking at when I saw 'em." He shivered involuntarily. "Klaus.."

"What does it look like? The seal?" Klaus burrowed his nose behind Dante's ear.

"I don't recognize it..three circles of Enochian script, but it's too hard to read. The circles are fading. They're actually really beautiful when you can see 'em..." He tipped his head a little and Klaus nuzzled the side of his throat. "Hnn.."

"Mmn." Klaus pressed against Dante's outstretched hand with his fingers, sending another ripple through the air. "Perhaps it's the magic here but.."

"You might possibly be the only person on earth with a worse libido than mine." Dante laughed. "I can't tell you how much I'm enjoying that."

"Good." Klaus' teeth raked over Dante's earlobe as his other hand ran down his stomach, cupping him through the tight leather. "Then you won't mind this."

The rasp of the zipper was loud in the close silence of the shrine. The air hung heavy with the creak of leather and increasingly ragged breath. Dante hissed as Klaus' leather-covered fingers closed around his cock, fingers spasming against the seal hanging in the air before them.

"Klaus... hey.." He murmured, trying to turn his head far enough to reach the handler's mouth. "w.."

"Shh.. please.. Let me enjoy this while I'm still your client." Klaus teased in Dante's ear.

When he came, it wasn't the nerve-frying orgasm they'd shared in the inn, but rather something quieter, languid and thick in his senses, mouth finally locking with Klaus'.

"Christ, you're gonna spoil m.." Outside the snap of pine boughs startled him. "Someone's out there." He straightened, pausing long enough to fix his pants. "Wait here."

Klaus glanced down at the milky fluid dripping from his glove. "Of course. Go to work, Devil Hunter."


	7. Boo.

Dante could move fast when he wanted to. Not the sense of near-uncontrollable acceleration that he often felt in his demon form, but faster than anything human. Especially when his adrenaline was spiking, which it had been since he'd arrived at the village.

Fighting was as good as fucking most days, and anytime he could combine both into a single outing was a good time indeed.

So when he glimpsed the rapidly retreating, unfortunately human figures in the woods, he was singularly disappointed. "Well, shit." Alastor buzzed against him and Dante laughed. "You're right."

Moments later, as the figures scrambled awkwardly down the mountainside, they were greeted from the shadows by something gleaming-dark with eyes like points of fire. [Boo.]

The malevolent creature waited a few moments, until the echoing screams were further downhill, before bursting out into laughter. He turned as Klaus' familiar footsteps crunched through the snow behind him. [Heh. Oh, hey.] He watched Klaus's startled face as he transformed back. "Sorry about that."

"Sorry for what? You terrified a few teenage voyeurs?" Klaus paused. "Oh, you mean about the.." He held an up-pointed index finger next to each side of his head. "I think the wings are very sexy. When this is all over, you have to let me try you out like that."

"The next time anyone tells me I'm incorrigible, I'm sending them your picture." Dante shook his head. "We're done here, then?"

"Yes. All we can do now is wait, I suppose." Klaus brushed the snow off his coatsleeves. "The mask will remain inert until tomorrow at sundown, and as you saw from the shrine, it's not as if our thief left any trace."

"Point. I'm not exactly a private eye, either, Klaus. I blow shit up and kill things for a living." Dante grinned, but it was a little forced. "and no offense to you or your magnificent libido, but I need a little time to suss things out. Can you do without me till tomorrow?"

"Of course, Dante. After all, I don't want to wear you out too much." Klaus gave him an almost-chaste kiss on the cheek and began to make his way back into town. "But you should make a point to have supper at the inn. Frau Hertzog makes the most amazing dumplings." He called back and Dante waved him on.

"I won't be long."

He waited until Klaus was out of view before trudging back up the mountain.


	8. Lousy with old magic

Slaebenich was a very different town in the middle of the night, Dante noticed as he trudged down the snowy streets. It still had the look of a festive holiday town, lights shining warmly from frost-covered windows, but the streets were deserted now. The softly blowing breeze stirred the snow, leaving only the faintest trace of people's footprints. Music drifting from the clustered buildings seemed faint, muffled.

It almost felt as if he were to open one of the doors, it would be a prop, or some tacky window display. Standing in the middle of the square, he felt a chill on the back of his neck that had nothing to do with the weather.

He approached the inn, the scent of food and woodsmoke drifting sweet and enticing from the chimney. Alastor buzzed against his back and he shivered again. "Stop. It doesn't matter, ok?" He murmured to the sword as he pushed the door open.

There were townspeople gathered, beers in hand, tables laden with food, and they all seemed to pause, startled as Dante pushed the door open. They stared at him for two long heartbeats before returning to their conversations. A moment later, the band at the inn's small stage started to play again.

"Dante, I saved you some dumplings. And duck. Marvelous duck." Klaus waved him over to a table. "Did you find anything interesting?" The handler took a long sip of wine and dabbed a napkin at his lips.

Dante looked down at the food, still gripped by the strange sensation that if he were to bite into it, it would be an illusion. "Hn? No. I just wanted to ..uhm. Get a lay of the land, I guess." He leaned Alastor against the wall and sat down, taking a piece of the duck. The meat was sweet and rich in his mouth and he relaxed marginally.

He glanced up to see Klaus looking at him intently. "Dante?"

"Nothing, probably just jet lag catching up to me." He answered absently. "Place gets pretty quiet outside at night."

"Oh, yes. A holdover from the distant past, I suppose, when fearsome things ruled the night." Klaus shrugged expansively, pouring the wine into a second glass. It ran thick and red down the sides as the demon hunter gently rocked the glass.

"You do look tired, dear friend." Klaus leaned against the table, tanned fingers brushing across the back of Dante's paler hand. "Eat a bit and then we can return upstairs." That last word was punctuated by grin that was equal parts kindly and lecherous.

Dante nodded, sipping the wine. It was as thick going down as it appeared in the glass, tasting of black spices, herbs and earth. "This is..."

"Local product. The areas to the east of here were noted in ancient times for their grapes." Klaus chuckled, feeding another sliver of meat to Dante.

Dante made a noncomittal sound as he took the meat from Klaus's fingers, letting his sharp teeth lightly scrape the tips. The chill on his spine had changed into a warmth and he slowly rose from the table. "I think I am tired, man. If you want to finish dinner, I can find my way upstairs."

Klaus took Dante's hand in his, raising the palm to his lips with a smirk. "It's not like you to pass up on such a meal, but I'll forgive you. I'm not letting this dish go to waste, though. I'll see you in a bit."

~~~  
The room felt claustrophobic when Dante reached it, throwing open the small window before he fell to the bed, letting Alastor thud to the floor, the sword hissing irritably.  
The shrine was not the only place with old magic, he realised. It ran through the entire town. (Probably why the Krampus settled here.) It was affecting him, though. He'd felt this way before, contact with items that disrupted the delicate balance of demon power and human fragility that he existed in. He felt as if he might be moving slowly underwater, the world wavering before him.


	9. Nightmare

Dante was dreaming.

He was 16 again, hands scrabbling in the choking heat of the old attic, trying to find Force Edge's hilt. The sword had been bundled up by their mother and tucked away when Sparda vanished. The heavy wooden door shook again and he heard Vergil's sing-song as he kicked at it again.

"I don't want to hurt you, little brother. I want to protect you. I want to keep you safe."

The oozing wounds that peppered his face and body stung as he reached further under the eaves, trying not to breathe and praying the massive old chests he'd dragged against the door would hold for just another moment.

(Just one more... moment...) but then Vergil was in the room and he knew what was going to happen and he couldn't breathe....

```  
Pale eyes snapped open and Dante gasped. He still couldn't breathe, and in the seeming eternity it took for his eyes to focus he realised something was sitting on his chest, hairy... hot.. stinking. With a grunt he threw the thing off him, rolling to the side, left hand closing on Ebony's grip. The thing rolled backwards, crouching in the shadows of the little room.

"Krampus, I suppose." He muttered, looking at the demon. Black chains rattled in the darkness, and the creature's eyes burned red. "You're a day early."

The demon leapt at him with a startling burst of speed, even as Dante unloaded one of Ebony's clips into the creature's furry hide. The momentum carried them both through the window, the wooden frame splintering. They struck the snowy pavement with skull-rattling impact and the demon launched off Dante's chest with a gleeful howl, springing away.

He'd felt ribs crack when the thing sprang off him, and Dante hauled himself to his feet, coughing. (what..the fuck?) Bloody mucus spattered the back of his hand.

He hurt.

He was cold.

The Krampus was not alone. Other dark figures with glowing eyes were melting out of the town's darkened alleys, chains clanking and hissing through the snow.

(Ok. so. let's review) Dante steadied Ebony in his bloodstained hand. Minor injuries like a broken bone, should have healed instantaneously, and they weren't. The air felt like stinging needles on his skin and he could barely keep himself focused on the horde dancing around him, ever closer. "No..no,no.no. Not this." The words were thick on his tongue. The first chains that slammed across his face felt like he he'd been hit by tractor trailer, splintering his thoughts into glassy shards. (Klaus...) he tried to say...

But another name was on his lips.

His senses were filled with foul-stinking heat and bloody darkness and a pain so severe that it soon became indistinguishable from anything else.

Until he heard a voice that seemed loud enough to come from the gods themselves.

"That's enough, darlings. I don't want him dead." The darkness parted to reveal a figure so brilliantly white that it rendered Dante nearly blind. The voice boomed in his ears, and Dante thought he would go deaf. "Who knew. The last of House Sparda, so trusting at times. I'm so glad. I would've hated to have gone to all this trouble if it turned out you were the wrong one."

 

~~~~

Klaus finished whispering in Dante's ear and stood up, dusting off his suit with the smile of the truly satisfied.


	10. short-circuited

When he woke up, it was to the sensation of cockroaches crawling under his skin, up the base of his skull and under his scalp. The sensation made him throw up, and the red-hot spatter seeped through the thorny remains of his pants, burning his skin.

At least it was dark. He couldn't hear the screaming fluorescent bulbs cooking his retinas.

A few feet away Klaus watched his captive cough up some bloody mucus, doubled over and hanging limply from the manacles on his wrists.

"I'd say I can't imagine what you're going through, but that'd be a lie." He said quietly, watching Dante wince. "Erika suffered like this before her change." He crouched down and took a fistful of white hair, yanking Dante's head up. "It's halfbreed physiology, I think. My mother was a creature of the Fae..took on human form and got herself pregnant from some idiot farmer."

Dante tried focusing on the words booming in his ears, like someone had slammed huge speakers up against his head. (come on, Dante, you fucking tool. Cowboy up and feed Klaus his teeth.) He mumbled something that was meant to be deeply insulting but came out only as a gurgle. (fuck.)

"I know, I know, you're mad at me. And I wouldn't have done it if I didn't have such very, very good reasons, darling." Klaus let go of the demon hunter's hair. "And I've seen quite enough movies to know that this is the part where the villain shares his master plan with the theoretically defeated hero. But then, if I really were the villain here, i'd lock you in a room full of sharks with laser beams on their heads." Klaus laughed and it sounded to Dante like he was inside a church bell ringing at full tilt. "I love that movie, liebchen."

"Anyways, oh, yes. Halfbreed physiology. Erika was born like you, Dante. Fragile, half-formed, whilst I came into the world with the full glory of my mother's blood singing in my veins. When she finally came into her power, though, she didn't become magnificent. She became horrible. A hairy beast my father kept chained in the basement. This town? This lovely little town? Killed my mother and burnt our house to the ground. Erika's body died, and the stinking priests sealed her soul in that mask."

Dante tried to focus on Klaus' pacing feet. It was so hard to listen, but what he'd been able to make out had given him a sick sense that he knew where this was going.

"They drove me away, and it took some doing but eventually, I returned their favours in full." Klaus ran his hand across the old stone wall. "Burned them all to ashes." He paused, kneeling by Dante again. "And over so, so many years, I discover that there's other halfbreeds in the world. And then? I find out about the one who is as close a match for her as might ever be born. The surviving son of Sparda. Since then, everything has been about this moment. Right now."

There was a rustling of chains in the darkness. "My little friends will keep an eye on you whilst I prepare the ceremony. I promise, Erika will make very good use of your beautiful body, Dante." Klaus yanked his head up again, and kissed Dante softly. "I'll see you very soon, dearest."

~~~~~~~~~~~~

His captors.. the Krampus? Klaus had somehow made copies of his sister? Dante couldn't quite work it out, and really, it didn't matter at the moment.. had eventually gotten bored of beating him with chains and switches and their stinking clawed hands. He'd stopped feeling it after a while, withdrawing so far into himself, he hoped he'd never get back out.

The darkness was split soon, though, by a faint electricity. A soft bluish light wrapping around him. "Ver..gil?" He mumbled, opening his eyes a bit.

Not Vergil. Black robes in front of him, some strange priest's vestment, and cool hands were stroking his face, driving away the pain.

"Not Vergil, sorry." The voice was staticky, like a poorly tuned radio. "I'm sorry I couldn't protect you better. But I'm here now. It's ok."


	11. Just like our first kiss

Dante leaned into the cool fingers stroking his hair, like Papa or Vergil would do when the world got too noisy and bright and Dante could hear the breeze stirring the hairs on his arm.

"Listen to me." the staticky voice whispered. "you've been poisoned. I think it's a variety of angelica, but what do I know, right?" A strange, chirruping laugh. "Anyways, I can burn it out of you."

Dante willed his swollen eyes open. Eyes like mercury were looking back at him, under spikes of black hair. The face was totally unfamiliar, but at the same time... "Who...?"

"You know me." The stranger said, and Dante believed him. "Do you trust me?"

Dante nodded slightly. "...yeah. Yeah, I do." he rasped.

Quicksilver eyes crinkled in delight. "Good. This is going to hurt you so much more than it hurts me, I'm sorry to say. Like our first kiss did. But don't worry. You'll enjoy it this time, too."

"First..?" Dante was certain he wasn't understanding, and then the kiss happened.

As his rescuer's mouth covered his, it was like biting down on a high-tension wire. He flinched, trying to pull back, but the chains and demon strong hands held him tightly. He thought he was going to die, screams muffled by the tongue sliding across his own. He wasn't sure if it were just the maelstrom of lightning howling in his ears, or if he were still screaming, when suddenly, it was as if he was in the eye of the storm, weightless.

The pain, the weakness was gone. Dante blinked, trying to figure out why his vision seemed to be filled with glitter, and watched iron-grey claws twitch on the stony floor. *His* claws.

He sat back suddenly, feeling the wings on his back counterbalance. "Alastor." He breathed. Since Dante had learned to control his own triggers, he hadn't needed to borrow Alastor or Ifrit's form. He'd almost forgotten the delicious shiver from the steely carapace protecting him.

"Thank you." He murmured, running his hand across the metallic skin covering his face. Already, a countdown had started in Dante's brain. There was only so long one of the devil arms could support him this way. "Let's go.

~~~`

The number of Krampus roaming the catacombs under the city had surprised him, until he'd killed a few. The masks had fallen away to reveal empty human faces. Possessed by the creature's spirit? Maybe. But they were still trying to kill him and he didn't have the patience to work through it.

He followed Klaus' scent, musky-sweet, through the catacombs. It wasn't hard. In fact, the handler was waiting for him. They stood in a chamber, the bones of the long-ago dead watching them, turning the mask over in his hands. [Klaus.]

"You never cease to impress me, liebchen." Klaus folded his arms. "It won't be fair if you fight me this way, though. You won't mind if I even the odds up, would you?"

There was the silent dark flash of a trigger, and Klaus' human form was replaced by something that took Dante's breath away. White feathers, gleaming silver. [A creature of the Fae. Your mother...]

{A swanmaiden.} A graceful nod, and a sudden flash of steel. {now come on. let's dance.}

Dante extruded blades from Alastor's protective shell, and they met in a shower of sparks and a screech of metal. The two wrestled for a moment then released. Dante checked in with his mental countdown as he danced backwards.

Alastor would run out of energy before this fight was over, and Dante's injuries had been extensive enough that he wouldn't be healed entirely yet. He was going to have to play dirty.

Vergil would be proud of him in a way.

[[blade storm]] the words in dark speech made his throat ache in a way that had nothing to do with the torturous syllables. The ghostly blades slammed into the feathered knight, crucifying him against the bony wall.

Klaus hissed, trying to wrench his arms free, but the ghost blades sunk deeper into his wrists. {hnnng.. well played, Dante.} He grunted, watching the demon hunter prowl towards him. {what are you going to do, now, darling?} Despite the pain, his tone was still playful, teasing.

Iron claws stroked Klaus's face, before raking down his chest, tearing at armoured plates and silken feathers. [you said you wanted me like this, didn't you?] In contrast, Dante's voice was icy.

He met Klaus's mouth in a brutal, tearing kiss, emerald drops of ichor smearing across dark grey skin. {haahhh.. you taste like ozone..}

There were no more words as the demon hunter took him, thrusts hard enough to crumble the ancient stones and bones behind them. The dusty floor littered with clumps of down and speckles of ichor.

Klaus panted, sagging from the blades holding him pinned. {was THAT my punishment, devil hunter?} he started to laugh, until he saw Dante return to human form, holding something in his hands.

Dante held up the mask. "No, Klaus. This is your punishment."

~~~~~

It took seemingly forever to find his way out of the crumbling tunnels, and he still wasn't up to full strength. Soon, though, he caught scent of fresh air, though, and voices carried with it.

"I'm telling you, he's here."

"I'm not doubting your senses. I do doubt your sense of direction."

Leon. Trish.

He rubbed the dust out of his eyes, and sagged against the wall, laughing softly until they found him.

~~~

Trish was stroking the dust from his hair as Leon helped him into the rented LandRover. All around them were the ruins of a town, burnt to cinders in a time long past.

"What I can't understand.." Leon said as they eased Dante into the seat. "If you didn't call us, who did? Enzo said the connection sounded like a ton of static.."

Dante just gripped Alastor's hilt a little tighter before sagging back. A downy white feather still clung to his arm.

(Klaus.)

~~~~

A feathered creature, pinned to the crypt wall like a butterfly, lolled it's head in the darkness. It crooned softly, words muffled by the hideous mask fixed to it's face, unaware that above ground, the snow started to fall like feathers.

FIN


End file.
